THE ARTIST
As part of her development as an artist, Leslie writes, "As a child, the Toledo Museum of Art was my playground. Within its walls, amongst its impressive collection and exceptional treasures, I was given the rare and extraordinary privilege of beginning my formal art education. It was the Museum that opened my eyes to a world of appreciation for fine art. Like many children before and since, I spent countless hours in the galleries creating memories that continue to influence my life and work. I was introduced to and challenged, at an early age, to study great masterpieces. I was taught to be curious. I was encouraged to dream."
Indeed, Ms. Adams followed her dream and in 1990 won the International Collegiate Competition in Figurative Drawing, sponsored by the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts. She was awarded the Grand Prize, a full tuition scholarship, which enabled her to attend the prestigious New York Academy of Art.
Since earning her Master of Fine Arts degree from the Academy, Ms. Adams has established herself as an eminent Ohio artist. She has been commissioned to paint more than a dozen official portraits for the State of Ohio. In addition to painting the most recent official gubernatorial portraits, she has portrayed many leaders of the Ohio State Senate, House of Representatives and the Supreme Court of Ohio. Leslie has also received commissions from respected universities, corporations, and institutions throughout the United States.
The recent years have characterized a significant turning point in Adams' already successful career. Her major solo exhibition, Leslie Adams, Drawn from Life, part of the Toledo Museum of Art's 2012 Fall Season of Portraiture, was a dream come true and received both critical and public acclaim. As the exhibition was drawing to a close, greater recognition was soon to follow. Adams was one of only forty-eight artists in the United States whose work was selected for inclusion in the celebrated 2013 Outwin Boochever Portrait Competition at the Smithsonian Institution's National Portrait Gallery in Washington, D.C. That same year, her work, Portrait of the Artist as a Young Girl, was awarded the William F. Draper Grand Prize in the Portrait Society of America's 15th Annual International Portrait Competition - their highest honor bestowed upon an artist and the first of its kind given to a drawing.
Paintings and drawings by Leslie Adams are consistently included and garner awards in prestigious national and international group exhibitions. Her work was part of a groundbreaking exhibition at the Butler Institute of American Art, Inspiring Figures, an Exhibit Celebrating American Women in Figurative Art. This collection of works explored the distinctive influence of female artists and their continued importance in the development of American figurative art and portraiture. As well as the abovementioned recognition, Adams works have received a multitude of awards from institutions including the Art Renewal Center, the National Arts Club, and American Society of Portrait Artists Foundation.
Also of note, Ms. Adams has been honored for her numerous civic contributions. Previously recognized as a Distinguished Citizen of Ohio by the Ohio Senate 123rd General Assembly, Leslie, as a 2014 YWCA Milestones Honoree in the Arts, received proclamations from, among other civic institutions, the Ohio Governor's office, the Ohio Senate and House of Representatives, and the United States Congress.
Throughout her life, Leslie has worked tirelessly to inspire the hearts and minds of children to pursue their dreams. Her upcoming solo exhibition, Leslie Adams, The Measure of a Life, at the Butler Institute of American Art, celebrates the hope, aspirations, and dreams within each of us. Although always concentrating on exciting new works and projects, including a book on the life of Willa B. Brown with the author, Rhonda Sewell, Leslie continues to welcome both public and private commissions.
Today, Leslie Adams has gained prominence amongst contemporary figurative artists. She has devoted her entire career to observing, interpreting and portraying the human figure through art. Her arrestingly conceived narrative portraiture captures the essence of her subjects by revealing both the attributes and complexities of their individual character, and the universal transcendent dignity and beauty of life and the human condition.
"As that little girl in the Toledo Museum of Art, I dreamt of becoming an artist."
Leslie Adams continues to dream.
July 2015
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2015 | Honorable Mention, International 2014-2015 Salon Exhibition, Art Renewal Center |
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2013 | William F. Draper Grand Prize, 15th Annual International Portrait Competition, Portrait Society of America Finalist, Outwin Boochever Portrait Competition 2013 Exhibition, Smithsonian, National Portrait Gallery
Honorable Mention, International 2012-2013 Salon Exhibition, Art Renewal Center |
2012 | Certificate of Excellence Award, 14th Annual International Portrait Competition, Portrait Society of America Honorable Mention, International 2011-2012 Salon Exhibition, Art Renewal Center Best Portfolio Award, 9th through 14th Annual Art of the Portrait Conference, Portrait Society of America
Honorable Mention, Member’s Only Competition, Portrait Society of America |
2011 | Solo Exhibition, First Award, & National League of American Pen Women Award, Toledo Area Artists, 93rd Annual Exhibition, Toledo Museum of Art First Award & Finalist, International 2010-2011 Salon Exhibition, Art Renewal Center
Honorable Mention, Member’s Only Competition, Portrait Society of America |
2010 | Third Award, Inspiring Figures: An Exhibit Celebrating American Women in Figurative Art, Portrait Society of America |
2009 | Semifinalist, Outwin Boochever Portrait Competition 2009, Smithsonian Institution’s National Portrait |
2007 | Certificate of Excellence Award, 10th Annual International Portrait Competition, Portrait Society of America |
2006 | First Award, Toledo Area Artists, 88th and 85th Annual Exhibition, Toledo Federation of Art Societies |
2005 | Receives commission to paint the official portrait of the Governor of the State of Ohio |
2002 | Canaday Award for Outstanding Painting, Toledo Area Artists, 84th Annual Exhibition, Toledo Federation of Art Societies |
2001 | Finalist, International Portrait Competition, American Society of Portrait Artists Foundation Individual Artist Grant, Arts Commission of Greater Toledo |
2000 | Finalist, The Artist Magazine’s 2000 Annual Art Competition |
1992 | The New York Academy of Art, New York, New York Master of Fine Arts Degree |
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1990 | Froebel Institute, Roehampton College, London, England |
1989 | The University of Toledo, Toledo, Ohio Bachelor of Fine Arts Degree Atelier Neo-Medici, Bowling Green State University, Bowling Green, Ohio |
2012/13 | The Toledo Museum of Art, Toledo Ohio; Leslie Adams: Drawn from Life |
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2009 | Krasl Art Center, St. Joseph, Michigan; Leslie Adams, Focus on the Figure |
2007 | Ella Sharp Museum of Art and History, Jackson, Michigan; Leslie Adams, The Power of Portraiture |
2017 | Salmagundi Club, New York, New York; American Masters J. Wayne Stark Galleries, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas; Women Painting Women: In Earnest Ohio Arts Council’s Riffe Gallery, Columbus, Ohio; 2nd Riffe Gallery Biennial Juried Exhibition Gerald R. Ford Presidential Museum, Grand Rapids, MI; ArtPrize Nine Customs House Museum, Clarksville, Tennessee: Women Painting Women: In Earnest |
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2016 | Salmagundi Club, New York, NY; Selections from Art Renewal Center Salon Exhibition Gerald R. Ford Presidential Museum, Grand Rapids, MI; ArtPrize Eight |
2015 | European Museum of Modern Art, MEAM, Barcelona, Spain; Selections from Art Renewal Center Salon Exhibition Gerald R. Ford Presidential Museum, Grand Rapids, MI; ArtPrize Seven
Art Renewal Center, International Salon Exhibitions (included in all International Salon Exhibitions since 2010) |
2014 | The Butler Institute of American Art, Youngstown, OH; National Midyear Exhibitions (included in five National Midyear Exhibitions between 2001 and 2010) |
2013/14 | Smithsonian, National Portrait Gallery, Washington, DC; Outwin Boochever Portrait Competition 2013 Exhibition |
2013 | Portrait Society of America, Atlanta, GA; 15th Annual International Portrait Competition Exhibition |
2011 | The Toledo Museum of Art, Toledo Ohio; Toledo Area Artists, Annual Exhibitions (included in thirteen Annual Exhibitions between 1992 and 2011)
Ohio Arts Council’s Riffe Gallery, Columbus, OH; Here’s Looking at You: Portraits in Ohio |
2010 | The Butler Institute of American Art, Youngstown, OH; Inspiring Figures: An Exhibit Celebrating American Women in Figurative Art |
2009 | Sotheby’s, New York, NY; Take Home a Nude |
2008 | Phillips de Pury & Company, New York, NY; Take Home a Nude |
2006 | Thompson Hine, New York, NY; Selected Works from the New York Academy of Art The New York Academy of Art, New York, New York; Take Home a Nude (included in Take Home a Nude Exhibitions since 1992) |
2004 | The National Arts Club, New York, NY; Catharine Lorillard Wolfe Art Club, 108th Annual Exhibition |
2001 | The Art Student’s League, New York, NY; International Portrait Exhibition |
2000 | Tomsk Museum of Art, Tomsk, Russia; International Touring Art Exhibition |
2000 | Novosobirsk Museum of Art; Novosobirsk, Russia; International Touring Art Exhibition |
1999 | Csongrad Town Hall, Csongrad Town, Hungary; International Touring Art Exhibition Mora Ferenc Museum of Art, Szeged, Hungary; International Touring Art Exhibition |
1997 | New American Paintings, Open Studios’ Midwest Competition, Juried Exhibitions in Print |
The Toledo Museum of Art, Toledo, Ohio The State of Ohio, Ohio Statehouse, Columbus, Ohio The Supreme Court of Ohio, Chief Justice Thomas J. Moyer Ohio Judicial Center, Columbus, Ohio The Ohio Senate, Ohio Statehouse, Columbus, Ohio The Ohio House of Representatives, Ohio Statehouse, Columbus, Ohio Ella Sharp Museum of Art & History, Jackson, Michigan Nationwide Corporation, Columbus, Ohio Wayne and Catherine Reynolds, Washington, DC New York University, Langone Medical Center, New York, New York The University of Michigan, W. K. Kellogg Eye Center, Ann Arbor, Michigan The University of Michigan, Medical School, Ann Arbor, Michigan The Ohio State University, The James Cancer Center and Solove Research Institute, Columbus, Ohio Bowling Green State University, Bowling Green, Ohio Albion College, Albion, Michigan The University of Toledo, Toledo, Ohio Owens Corning Corporation, Toledo, Ohio Our Lady of the Most Holy Rosary Cathedral, Toledo, Ohio Owens Community College, Northwood, Ohio The University of Findlay, Findlay, Ohio United Bank & Trust, Tecumseh, Michigan Jack Hanna’s Animal Adventures, Perrysburg, Ohio The Henry J. Knott Family, Baltimore, Maryland Dr. Don Bacigalupi, Bentonville, Arkansas Dr. Eileen Guggenheim & Russell Wilkinson, New York
Dr. David Steadman, Berkley, California |
Signature Status Member, Portrait Society of America Member, International Women’s Forum YWCA 2014 Milestones Honoree, which included official recognition from the following:
Special Recognition as an Outstanding Citizen, the Senate of the 123rd and 125th General Assemblies of Ohio Special Award for Outstanding Achievement in the Arts, The Toledo Museum of Art, 2003 Member, Art Renewal Center Member, National League of American Pen Women Gubernatorial Artist for the State of Ohio 2006/2011 Outstanding Alumna in the College of Arts & Sciences, The University of Toledo, 2003 20 Under 40 Leadership Award, 2003
Civitas Award, 2001 |
Dayna Jalkanen; The Art and Artistry of the Ohio Statehouse; The Donning Company Publishers, 2018. Ross, Kara and Fred Ross, eds. Art Renewal Center, 13th International Arc Salon, Annual Competition Catalogue: Art Renewal Center. El-Bermani, Alia and Diane Feissel, Woman Painting Women: In Earnest, 2017. Vivirito, Stephanie. “Leslie Adams: A Little Girl’s Dreams Come True.” American Art Collector. Dec 2016. Trippi, Peter. “Classic Moment.” Fine Art Connoisseur. Dec 2016: 122. Egnoski, Christine. “Handwritten Dreams.” The Art of the Portrait. 3rd Quarter 2016, Issue 72:6-7. Inda 11, The 11th International Drawing Annual, Manifest Gallery. Margaret McCann, Editor; Donald Kuspit, Irving Sandler, Vincent Desiderio, et al; The Figure: Painting, Drawing, and Sculpture; Skira Rizzoli, 2014. Moss, Dorothy. “Contemporary Portraiture in the United States: Through the Lens of the Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery’s Outwin Boochever Portrait Exhibition.” Number 2 2014: 43. Snow, K. Mitchell. The NPG’s Outwin Boochever Portrait Competition. January 2014: 1-2. Stricklin, Krystle. “Drawing the Art of Life.” International Artist Magazine. Oct/ Nov 2013: 32-35. Miller, Vincent, Ed. The Art of the Portrait, 15th Annual Award Winners Showcase. International Artist Magazine, Aug/Sep 2103: 34. Stricklin, Krystle. “From Inspiration to the Canvas and Back Again.” American Art Collector. August 2013: 62-65. Sheriff, Mary and Wendy Wick Reaves, The Outwin Boochever Portrait Competition Exhibition, Smithsonian, National Portrait Gallery: 2013 Gilman, Amy. Leslie Adams, Drawn from Life, Toledo Museum of Art: 2012 Egnoski, Christine. “Drawn from Life.” American Art Collector. October 2012: 40. Ross, Kara and Fred Ross, eds. Art Renewal Center, 10th through 15th International Arc Salon, Annual Competition Catalogues: Art Renewal Center Miller, Vincent, Ed. Portrait Society of America’s Masters Showcase. International Artist Magazine, Dec 2010: 34-35. Egnoski, Christine and Lauren Harris, eds. Inspiring Figures: Portrait Society of America: 2010.. Nowak, Cynthia. “Flying High, thanks to UT.” University of Toledo, Alumni Magazine, Fall 2007: 26-27. Provance, Jim. “Taft Portrait Unveiled in Ohio Statehouse.” Columbus Dispatch, 28 Mar 2007: A1. Craig, Jon. “Updated: Taft Portrait a ‘Wow!’” Cincinnati Enquirer, 28 Mar 2007: A1. David, Jacob and Joel Washing. “Two Toledos – A Documentary.” 2006. Yonke, David. “Bishop Hoffman’s Likeness Applauded.” The Blade, [Toledo], 12 Feb 2005: B3. “Portrait of a Woman.” The Three-minute Egg. PBS. 27 Oct 2001. Zevitas, Steven and Aristeo Castillo, eds. New American Paintings. 11th ed. Wellesley, MA: Open Studios Press
Pfalzgraf, Jenny. “The Stuff Dreams are Made Of.” The Artist’s Magazine. Aug 1996: 60. |